Kingdom Hearts: Revelation Key
by AscendantEnvoy
Summary: Years have passed since the defeat of Xemnas, and the need for the Keyblade has all but been forgotten. But something new stirs in the depths of darkness, and someone new has to pick up the Key to Salvation or Destruction. *consider it KH without disney*
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

"_I gotta know if I'm livin' in a dream,  
is this what it seems  
Gotta know anyone believes  
How did I get lost, what's the final cost  
Could you please help me find the key?"_

When Chris woke up early that morning, he knew something was different. Usually the sun would have already been streaming in his window by this time of the morning, but all that he could see out it was an impenetrable blackness. Jumping out of bed, he pulled on clothes and wandered to the door. Peering out, he saw some of the other students on his hall looking out their own doors, and a few people walking towards the lobby.

Chris followed the others to the lobby, and was greeted by the sight of two policemen trying to calm the crowd of students and staff who had woken up to this inexplicable phenomenon. Chris searched the crowd with his eyes, looking for a friendly face, and just barely caught sight of some of his friends exiting the lobby to go to the courtyard. He pushed through the crowd to follow after them.

Exiting the crowded building, he found his friends Jon, Haley, and Sara standing near one of the streetlamps that ringed the courtyard, the only things providing light in a now lightless world.

"Hey guys." Chris approached the group, and Jon made room for him around the lightpost. "Any idea what's going on?"

Jon shook his head, his red curls flattened by sleep. "We don't know anything. The cops inside are simply trying to do damage control. They've got no idea what's going on."

The darker headed Haley spoke up now, her blue eyes sparkling even in the solitary light from the lamppost. "But what could cause something like this?"

The shorter, brown-haired, green-eyed Sara broke in, "This isn't natural, there's no way. And there's no way is some kind of hallucination or dream, because we're all here, and I'm pretty sure we're all awake."

"Are we, Sara?"

Chris and his three friends turned around to see a blonde man wearing a grey robe standing between them and the dorm building.

Sara was the most startled of the four, and backed up until she was standing between Haley and Chris. The blonde man noticed this, and gave a soft chuckle. "Your friends can't protect you, not from me."

Jon stepped up, blocking the man's sight of Sara. "Who are you? Why are you threatening Sara?"

The blonde man simply sighed, and pointed at the ground beneath Jon's feet. "There are more important questions you should be asking, Jonathan, like where do all the lost souls go? Or what happens when I fall through a Door of Darkness?"

Jon and the others looked where the man was pointing, and Haley screamed. Beneath Jon's feet the ground had welled up and turned dark almost as if a black layer of energy was trying to swallow Jon whole.

Jon attempted to step out of the circle of blackness, but dark tendrils of smoky energy wrapped themselves around his legs, pulling him into the ground. Chris and Sara each grabbed one of Jon's hands, while Haley grabbed him around the waist and attempted to pull him back onto solid land.

The blonde headed man walked closer to the group. Chris looked up at his approach, and pulled himself loose from Jon's hand. "Whatever you're doing, make it stop! Let him go!"

The blonde headed man simply smiled. "What has begun cannot be stopped, Keybearer, not even by you."

"What? What did you call me?"

The blonde man simply smiled again, and then threw Chris to the side. As he struggled to get up, a dark hole like the one trying to eat Jon opened up beneath him, only this time, he was dragged down much faster without someone to try and help him. Chris saw Haley receive a similar treatment, as she was roughly pushed aside and another hole opened up under her. By this point, Chris was up to his neck in the darkness, and all he could see was the blonde man approach Sara and put a hand on her shoulder.

"SARA!" Chris used his final breath to scream her name. No one else was nearby , but he hoped that his scream would bring someone to help her. But before he could see if someone was coming, the darkness enveloped him, and he started falling.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"_Nail in my hand_

_From my creator_

_You gave me a life_

_Now show me how to live"_

Chris was falling, and falling slowly. After he was swallowed by the dark hole in the ground that the blonde man created, he woke up in what seemed to be an endless tunnel, and he had been falling since. There didn't seem to be a bottom to the tunnel, and without a way to tell the time, Chris had no idea how long he had been tumbling end over end into the blackness.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jon was experiencing the same thing as Chris, falling into the impenetrable blackness. He had found a lighter in his pocket, and had tried for almost an hour to use it to see around him. One of the strangest things about his fall, he realized, was not that he hadn't reached bottom, but that there was no wind whatsoever. He had noticed this first when he had lit the lighter, and it hadn't been blown out immediately. Wherever he was, it was just as unnatural as the darkness that had blotted out the sky.

* * *

Haley, too, was falling into the darkness. She had worried that she was dead for a time, but then realized it was something that she considered much worse. She was falling into a void, where no light, sound, or heat ever appeared. Haley wrapped her jacket around her, and curled up into a ball as she slowly floated down into endless night.

* * *

Far in the distance, Chris began to see something, which startled him after seeing only blackness for so long. He turned to face it, but as he did so, realized that he would only pass by the light, and not very closely. As it came closer and closer, he realized that it was actually several lights, in fact, it was a ring of seven towers surrounding what looked like to be a platform hanging in empty space.

As he passed the platform at a distance of almost a hundred yards, he saw a figure standing on the platform.

Jon.

* * *

Jon had finally floated downwards until he was standing on a platform that looked to be made of brightly stained glass. The glass created a picture, encircled by seven towers that provided more light than he had seen in recent hours.

The picture on the stained glass platform was that of what appeared to be a solar system encircling a large heart shaped design, open on the top as the two halves of the heart curled inward. Beneath the Heart was a large classical keyhole pattern.

Jon had not moved since he landed on the platform, but he now took a tentative step forward. The seven light producing towers instantly glowed a brilliant green, the shade of a perfect emerald, or the grass on an early spring day. Hesitant, Jon took another step, and then fell to his knees as tremors started to rock the platform.

Jon searched for anything to gain a grip on, but there were no raised edges on the floor, and he was too far away to run to one of the towers. Then, just as suddenly as it started, the shaking stopped. Jon turned around, and was greeted by the sight of three stone platforms now sitting on the glass floor. On top of one platform was a large shield, on the next, a sword, and on the third was a staff capped by a green jewel.

Jon was instinctively drawn to the staff. He took one long look at the sword, and then picked up the staff. Instantly, the other weapons and their platforms disappeared. Holding the staff with his left hand, Jon spun to look around the now empty platform.

It was then that the voice spoke to him.

_The path of the mage is not easy, but if offers great reward._

_There will be hard times ahead, and you must be the voice of reason._

_Your strength is great, but your mind is greater. Do not let it fall to the darkness._

"What? Who are you?" Jon was only able to get a few words out before the platform below him shattered into a million pieces, and he found himself falling once again.

* * *

Haley looked up from where she had landed on the platform that, unbeknownst to her, had the same stained glass pattern as the one Jon had just been on. Off in the distance she could swear she had heard someone call her name, but now her attention was focused on the seven pillars around the platform. When she stood up, they had glowed a bright red, but the color had faded, and after the shaking had stopped, she had found herself face to face with two stone platforms, one supporting a sword, and the other a shield. She looked perplexedly at the sword. "That thing is huge. I don't think anyone could hold that up."

_It is your turn to choose your destiny. _

_One of your friends has already chosen his, and the other soon shall. _

_Make your decision, will you cut down the darkness in your path, or shield others from it?_

Looking around for the source of the voice, Haley saw nothing but the empty space behind the pillars. She slowly approached the shield, and lifted it off its stand. It felt incredible light in her hands, and she slid her right arm into the straps. As soon as she did so, the ground gave way beneath her, and the sudden shock of the fall left her unable to scream.

* * *

Chris landed heavily on the glass platform, and his first thought was a question. "What is going on?"

As if in response to his yell of frustration, the pillars around him, which had been giving off a soft white light, began to glow a deep blue. Chris took a step forward, and the ground began to shake violently. Chris dropped to a ready stance, allowing him to stay upright through the shaking. He stared in wonder as a stone platform seemed to materialize out of the glass floor. When the shaking had stopped and the pillar was entirely above the glass, the air around the top of the stone began to shimmer, and a large steel-bladed sword appeared, hovering above the platform.

Chris approached the platform slowly, and reached up to take hold of the sword. As he grasped it in his right hand, a voice began to speak to him in his mind.

_This is the power you have sought_

_The power to save others_

_The power to strike down the darkness, and to rip asunder the evil you see._

_This is your starting point_

_Are you ready?_

Just as he was about to respond, the ground gave way beneath him in a shower of glass, and Chris found himself falling once again.


	3. Chapter 3

_I am a new day rising  
I'm a brand new sky  
To hang the stars upon tonight  
I am a little divided  
Do I stay or run away  
And leave it all behind?_

It's times like these you learn to live again  
It's times like these you give and give again  
It's times like these you learn to love again  
It's times like these time and time again

~Times Like These~ Foo Fighters

Chapter Three:

Chris came to rest on another platform, this one decorated with the pictures of three young men, two blonde headed teenagers, one in a black and white outfit decorated with x's, and the other wearing a black uniform and matching jacket. The third young man had light purplish-blue hair, and wore baggy purple cargo pants and a yellow jacket. All three held swords shaped like giant keys.

Chris took a step forward, the sword still in his hand.

_The light in your heart is great_

_But so is your shadow_

_You will face struggles_

_But you will overcome your obstacles_

_You simply must learn to trust yourself_

"Who said that?" Chris called out; he was getting tired of the voices. He brought the sword up in front of him, waiting for someone or something to show itself.

_There is fear in your heart_

_But there is also hope_

_Never let the fear drown out that hope, and you will become invincible._

"I've had it up to hear with weird voices and falling forever! Show yourself!"

_You're light is great_

_But the stronger it becomes, the longer your shadow will grow._

_Prepare yourself._

"My shadow? What?" Chris looked back over his shoulder, but could see nothing. The light from the seven pillars cast multiple shadows on the ground, but they were all but insubstantial because of the bright light. But they wouldn't stay that way for long. Chris took a step back as first one, then another, and then another shadow condensed into a single pool of darkness, and a small black creature rose up from each pool's depths.

Chris took an involuntary step back, but then realized that he was surrounded. The seven shadows cast by the seven pillars had in turn given birth to seven creatures. Each of the small black things came up no farther than Chris's knee, but each had claws on the end of its two front appendages, and antenna on each of the creatures twitched, seeming to acknowledge the other's presence. Their golden yellow eyes turned one by one to Chris, and the sword he held in his hand. As one, they began to tighten their circle around him.

_If you want to save others, you must learn to fight_

_You must learn to fight, and you must learn to never hesitate_

_Let your heart guide your hand_

"Again with the voice!" Chris spun on the spot, counting his enemies. Somehow, they had doubled in number in the blink of an eye. Dropping to a defensive crouch, Chris brought the sword he held up. As he did so, the air around it began to shimmer, and blocks of light formed a ring around its length. The light condensed and sank into the blade, until finally, Chris was left holding one of the key shaped weapons from the stained glass floor below him.

The creatures surrounding him immediately backed off, but did not retreat entirely. They weren't going to leave. Grinning at the seeming fear that the creatures had of the key weapon he was holding, Chris took a step towards the nearest monster. It took two shivering steps backward, but then seemed to grow still. Sensing it was about to strike, Chris brought his weapon up and held it vertically in front of him. Suddenly, the small creature jumped straight towards Chris. He side-stepped and brought his weapon crashing down on the creature's small back. It seemed to slump in mid-air, and then disappeared in a flash of light.

"Well…that was easy?" Chris stared at the spot where the creature had been only moments before.

_Guard up, Keybearer_

_Never lose sight of your surroundings._

Heeding the advice of the voice in his head, Chris spun to his right, just in time to use the flat of the blade to push away another creature. "What are these things?" Chris asked the air, and the voice in his head as he drew his blade through the body of another wriggling black mass, and was rewarded with a flash of light.

_Heartless_

_Beings without minds, but possessing bodies and hearts._

"They're called Heartless but they have hearts? Makes no sense whatsoever!" Chris yelled as he cut through two more Heartless."

_They are called Heartless because they seek out hearts, devouring them in order to procreate_

_They are the embodiment of darkness, and if you are not careful, they will swallow you as well._

Chris ducked as a Heartless leapt at his head. "Duly noted." He brought his weapon up to block another swipe from a Heartless' claw, and then drove his blade through its body. Now there were only three of the Heartless left. Chris ran three steps to the side, to put himself outside the corner he was about to be backed into, and then sent a Heartless flying with a kick. It flew off the platform, bursting into light as it flew off the edge. He swept his blade through the remaining two Heartless in one swing, and then lowered his blade.

_Well done_

_But remember, Heartless dwell in the shadows, and nothing casts a bigger shadow than someone filled with light._

_Such as a Keybearer_

Chris quickly put two and two together. The voice just said that the shadows of Keybearers produced Heartless? He turned to look behind him. "Great…." His shadow had still not reappeared. Chris brought his blade back up, holding it out before him in a ready stance.

Suddenly, two figures landed on the platform in front of him.

Jon looked up after landing on all fours on the platform. Chris was standing in front on him holding some sort of giant silver and yellow key, and Haley next to him holding another key just like it.

"So…."Jon looked at Chris and Haley. "Are you guys getting the creepy voice in your head too?"

"It's more annoying than creepy…" Haley turned to look at the picture beneath the three friends, while Chris held up his key.

"It seems like we're all holding the same type of weapon…" The weapon in question consisted of a rounded silver blade ending in a large, skeleton-key-like structure on the end. The handle was wrapped in a type of blue leather, and the guard was made out of a yellow metal that was warm to the touch. Dangling from the hilt of each weapon was a small silver chain, and attached to each was a small heart-shaped charm.

_The Keyblade_

_A weapon of creation or destruction_

_A weapon of the light, but not restricted to it._

_You would all do well to master its many uses._

With those unspoken words echoing in the minds of each of the three young adults, the weapons, the Keyblades in their hands began to glow. Just as when the Keyblade appeared, blocks of light surrounded Chris's arm and the Keyblade itself. The shifting blocks of gold and white light suddenly changed color, to silver and a deep, royal blue. They slowly sank into the Keyblade, until its length glowed with light.

Chris looked to Jon and Haley, where the same thing was happening to them. Jon's left arm and his Keyblade were swirling with green and dark, blackish-purple light, and Haley's right arm and Keyblade were surrounded by ribbons of gold and red.

The light around each of their arms condensed, until each was left holding a Keyblade similar in shape, but different in color than the ones they had been holding moments before. Chris's weapon had retained its silver blade, but now sported a blue guard and a brown leather handgrip, and the keychain hanging from it had become a small sword, in fact, it was an exact miniature of the weapon he had taken off the platform earlier.

Jon's Keyblade now had a black blade, and a green hand guard with a brown leather handgrip, and a miniature of his staff hung from the chain attached to the end. Haley's weapon had shifted from a silver blade to a golden one, and now sported a bright red guard; a miniature of the shield she had received earlier dangled from the hilt of her blade.

_Weapons to fight the darkness_

_Weapons to enlighten the darkest places_

_Weapons to protect the innocent_

_This is what a true Keyblade is_

_Your hearts have been opened_


End file.
